Beginning September 1946

Ending August 1959

The GI Bill was a godsend! I don't know who introduced it but Congress passed it in 1943 and it became a law of the land. It granted funds for the education of service men and women as a how of gratitude for our participation in World War II. The U.S. had never passed such a bill before. It paid for your tuition to the college of your choice and there was a clause in the bill that allowed funds for books. The government would pay for any book your instructor guaranteed you needed for the course.

I first took the opportunity offered by the Bill in September of 1946. I had returned for Japanese Occupation in July of that year and started my senior year at Southwestern College that Fall. As I recall it, we received a check for $160 every month to pay living expenses. I signed vouchers for tuition and books and the invoice went to the government office of the region and the school and bookstore were paid. No money was changing hands for this part of the support.

Incidentally, G.I meant "Government Issue". It most often referred to service people as "GI's", but the initials could also mean "rules and regulations" or "following government orders".

The Bill paid for my final year at SC. Katherine was also working then, teaching elementary music to children in the Winfield Public Schools. All of that income made it possible for us to purchase our first car--a 2-door Nash coupe, two-tone blue in color.

In June of 1947 we headed for Ann Arbor, Michigan, and I began work on a Masters Degree in Music Education. The GI bill came through for us, plus, Katherine got a job teaching Women's Chorus and monitoring Study Hall periods in Ann Arbor High School. We had a 3^rd floor apartment near the campus that we were able to get because the owners had reserved for any teacher in need of housing. There was never a slip-up on the GI Bill payments so we sailed right through that year with colors flying.

My first real job teaching was in Anthony KS. We were there from August 1948 to Sept. 1950 when we went back into the services of Uncle Sam for the Korean Conflict. That was a different kind of education but it was paid for by the government (at 1s^t lieutenant pay), which was better than my salary at Anthony (you'll read about that in another story).

Back to Dodge City from Korea in February 1952, I taught in the Spearville KS schools from Feb. to June, then returned to the University of Michigan to begin work toward a doctoral degree. That was in the summer of 1952. The GI Bill came through for me again for those three months, and we had little Davey with us then.

My next position was in the Planeview Public Schools in Wichita KS. We were in "beautiful, beautiful Planeview" (humor here, living in a wartime housing small house for $48 a month). We were in Planeview for three years. In the summer of 1953, I did not go to college. I needed time to think about my career. I considered briefly going into life insurance sales but soon discovered that would never be my choice.

 So in the summer of 1954, I attended summer school alone at Indiana University in Bloomington. The GI Bill made that possible. I was setting my sights toward getting a degree there and that summer confirmed my hopes that IU was where I should be. Susan had arrived in April of '53 so she was with us from here onward.

We stayed in Hoosier Courts on the Bloomington campus for the summers of '55, '56, '57, and then in June of 1958 we moved back to Hoosier Courts for the required year of residence. Timothy was born in April of '59. Several graduate students had added to their families while attending school there, so Hoosier Courts was affectionately known as "Hoosier Hatchery". As the story goes, a railroad track ran right by the rear of the housing area. The train noise at 3:00 in the morning wakened EVERYBODY! Young parents could not go immediately back to sleep so they made babies!

My year of residence ended in august of 1959. The Doctor of Music Education degree was awarded that month, but we did not stay in Bloomington for the ceremonies. We really did want to get away from that place. We had our good ol' 1950 Mercury auto all through that period, and for the first time we decided to become a 2-car family. The new car was a used 1957 DeSoto hardtop convertible. Oh, I loved driving that car! It was sort of a self-reward for completing the rigors of doctoral study. That DeSoto had push-button transmission, it was easy riding, and it was two-tone in color--blue lower part and cream top. Neat! We had two cars and a trailer, for household goods, etc., to take us to Beloit WI and Beloit College. Katherine drove the DeSoto and Davey (9) was with her to care for the 4-month-old Timmer. He got good at changing diapers. Susan (6) rode with me in the Mercury pulling the trailer. It was a very satisfying trip up to Wisconsin.

Getting back to the GI Bill: my eligibility for support covered everything but the last 10 days at IU, and that we could afford easily.

Summing it all: The Bill had gotten me through one year of bachelors degree work, one full year of masters degree, and one full year and 4 summers on the doctorate. I could not have accomplished those goals without the GI Bill. My formal education was complete! (So just how would I spend my summers now??)

Thank you, Uncle Sam! Without you we couldn't have done it! I thank you, and millions of others GI's join me in praising you.

My young friend Gabe Candelaria is in the service now, assigned to the Kosovo hotspot, trying to keep the peace there. He was home on leave recently and I asked if the military still included a plan something like we had after WWII.

He said they have one but it's different. Now they give you a severance pay of $15000 and you can use it for whatever purpose to prepare you for your chosen field. It could be education, or tech school, or any other training that would help convert your skills from rifles and grenades to something more peaceful.